Apparatus for forming plates



May 14, 1935.

G. R. V-HAUB 2,001,460

APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLATES Filed Aug. 27, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet l attorney:

May l4, 1935. e. R. HAUB APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLATES 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 27, 1931 grwentoz" GOW flaw];

lmu

May 14, 1935. s. R. HAUB I APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLATES Filed Aug. 27, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 May 14, 1935. G. R. HAUB APPARATUS FOR FORMING PLATES Filed Aug. 2'7, 3 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented May 14, 1935 I NT OFFICE.

APPARATUS FOR FORMING rm'rns George R. Haub, Washington, Pa., assignor to.

Hazel-Atlas Glass Company, Wheeling W. Va...

a corporation of West Virginia Application August 27,

Claims.

This invention relates to glass treating apparatus and is especially designed to reheat and reshape glass articles which have previously been formed in the usual press mold or blow mold of 5 a forming machine.

While it is a comparatively simple matter to form articles such as nappies and the like in a press mold, considerable difliculty has been encountered in attempting to form shallower objects such as table plates, saucers, etc. It is an object of the present invention therefore to provide an apparatus by means of which relatively deep articles such as nappies may be reheated and flattened'out to form shallower objects such as saucers, plates, etc.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of such a device which may be easily converted into a fire polisher or edge burner for ordinary ware such as drinking glasses and the like;

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figures 1 and 1a combined represent a. perspective view of the complete apparatus.

Figure 2 is an end view of the device with parts broken away.

Figure 3 is an enlarged detail view of one of the flattening elements and'its related parts.

Figure 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view through the complete apparatus. 35 Figure 6 is a detail view, partly in section, of

one of the top burners.

Figure 7 is a perspective view, partly broken away, of one of the side burners.

Figure 8 is a more or less diagrammatic plan 40 view of the several carriers for the ware showing their relation to the fiatteners.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary sectional view through the idler sprocket wheel and related parts showing one of the articles as initially placed in its shaper, and

Figures 10, 11, 12 and 13 are sectional views through one of the shapers showing the article in various stages during the reheating and flattening process.

Referring to the drawings more in detail, the numeral l indicates the body of a carriage or truck provided with wheels 2 which forms a support for two I-beams 3. On the beams 3 are a mounted brackets 4 and plates 5, 6, and l on 1931, Serial No, 559,797

which the major portion of the apparatus to be described is mounted.

A supportingsleeve 8 and a bearing sleeve 9 are mounted on the plates 5 and 6 respectively and are provided with shafts for sprocket wheels I0 and II, A sprocket chain I2 is connected with the sprocket wheels l0 and II and power is supplied to the latter by means of a motor I3. The shaft of this motor is provided with a pinion gear l4 meshing with a gear l5 on'shaft Hi. This 10 shaft is provided with a worm l1 meshing with a worm wheel l8 of a'reduction gearing Ill. The vertical shaft of this reduction gearing is provided with a pinion 20 meshing with a gear wheel 2| fixed with respect to the sprocket wheel ll 15 by means of a shear pin 22. The sprocket wheel II is keyed to its shaft II' as indicated by numeral 23 and ball bearings 24 serve to reduce friction in the rotative movement of the gear and sprocket wheel. An anti-friction bearing 25 is 20 also provided for the idler sprocket wheel II).

In order to take up any slack in the chain '12 the plate 5 is provided with slots 5' which permit a longitudinal movement of the plate through the medium of an adjusting screw 5". 2

The sprocket chain l2, in the present embodiment of the invention, is provided with sixteen vertically disposed bearing members 26, each of which is provided with a pair of wings 21 which ride upon a track 28 supported on the upper ends 3 of the brackets 4. As will be noted from an in-" spection of Figure 1a the track 28 terminates ad- -jacent the right hand end of the machine and in order to support the wings 21 while the bearings 26 are rounding the sprocket wheel ID, the latter is provided with a flange 29 on which the inner of each pair of wings 21 rests. With this construction it will be apparent that the bearing sleeves 26 are prevented from wobbling as they are carried about their closed path by the sprocket chain l2. The chain is preferably guarded by a plurality of overlapping plates l2 which are connected to the upper side of the chain.

Rotatably mounted in each bearing 26 is ahollow shaft 30 to the upper end of which is rigidly secured a shallow carrier or shaper element 3|. This sleeve is provided on its lower end with a pinion 32 adapted to mesh with a fixed rack 33 carried by the brackets 4 at the right of Figures 2 and 5. Extending upwardly through the hollow shaft 30 is a rod or plunger 34 provided with an ejector disc or plate 35 at its upper end. This disc normally rests in a countersunk opening 38 formed in the shaper plate, but is adapted to be 56 raised as indicated in Figure 13 for lifting the vI'tion of the plate 83 the article will be properly finished article after it has been properly shaped. The means for raising the rod 34 consists of a fixed plate 31 provided with an upwardly inclined portion 38 on which the lower end of the rod- 84 is adapted 'to ride. After leaving this raised portion the rod 34 will be lowered by its own weight and will thus bring the ejector disc back into the countersunk seat 35, in the shaper 3|;

Theburners for softening the walls of the nappy or berry bowl or the like, which is to bereshaped into the form of a substantially fiat plate, are supported on a plurality of brackets 48 which are in turn supported on I-beams 4|. These beams are supported on sleeves 42 slidably mounted on rods or pillars 43, the latter being supported on plates 44 carried by the I-beams 3. The members 43 are provided with screw threads 45 for receiving nuts 46 which support the sleeves 42 and provide a means for raising and lowering the sleeves as may be desired. A ball bearing race 41 is disposed between each sleeve 42 and nut 46 to reduce friction between these members.

The top burner which is supported bythe brackets 40 comprises a plurality of units one of which is shown in Figure 6 and is indicated by numeral 48. Each of these burner sections is preferably provided with three compartments, namely, side compartments 49 and an intermediate compartment 58, and each compartment is provided with a baflle plate 5i so as to cause the gases to be projected throughout the length of the compartment. The main gas line for these burners is shown in Figure 1 and is designated by the numeral 52. This pipe enters a mixing chamber 53 which is provided with an air inlet 54 and the mixed gases are carried through manifolds 55 to the branch lines 58. One of the branch pipes is connected with each of the chambers- 4958 at the point at which the baffle 5| is mounted and each branch pipe is provided with a valve 51. It will be apparent therefore that the'burners may be used in their entirety or by closing off appropriate valves 5?, the center compartment alone may be used as a burner or the two side compartments only may be used as burners. It will also be obvious that by suitably adjusting the nuts 48 the burners 48 may be raised or lowered to adjust them to ware of different heights.

The burners 48 just referred to are supported directly above the path of travel of the shaper plates 3| as clearly indicated in Figures 5 and 8 and it is also to be noted that the rack bar 33 is disposed vertically below the burner so as to impart a rotary movement to the shapers 3| as they are carried beneath the burners.

In Figures 10, 11 and 12 the article being reshaped is shown in the various stages of reshaping operations and it will be noted that in order to obtain the best results it is essential that the article be exactly centered with respect to the shaper 3|. To this end a centering head 68 'is disposed on the upper end of the shaft of the idler sprocket l0 and is connected to the hub by a shear pin 6|. Radiating from the head so are a plurality of rigidly secured arms 82 provided with V-shaped centering plates 63. These plates are placed about the periphery. of the centering head 68 so as to be disposed adjacent the edges of the shaper elements 3| as they pass aroundthe sprocket wheel l8, and it will be obvious that if the operator places the article to be reshaped with its edges incontact with the notched porber.

will be noted thatwhile the walls of the article tend to collapse when softened by the heat from the burners 48, the intermediate portion of the wall (Figure 11) does not descend into complete contact with the shaper. Hence it is highly desirable that some means be provided for forcing the wall of the softened article into contact with the shaper in order to produce in the article the identical shape or contour of the shaping mem- For this purpose a plurality of disc shaped flattening members 18 are provided, there being six of these members indicated in the present embodiment of the invention.

Keyed to the upper end of the shaft of the sprocket wheel II is a'carrier disc 1| provided with six radial slots I2 through which guide rods I3 are suspended by means of bosses I4. Slidably mounted on each guide rod I3 is an arm I5 secured on a bushing I8. Also secured on the bushing I5 is an index or control finger II which has its inner end disposed in a groove I8 formed in the hub 19 of the carrier disc II. Disposed within an opening in the outer end of each arm I5 is a guide member 88 \through which a bolt 8| loosely extends, and the flattener disc or weight I8 is provided with a hub 82 which is threaded onto the lower end of the bolt. This loose connection between the arm I5 and the flattener disc I8 allows a limited freedom of movement of the flattener disc with respect to the arm, thereby permitting the disc to rest freely on the article being reshaped, and also allowing for any irregularities of movement of the shapers 3| as they are carried around with the sprocket wheel II.

On the inner end of each arm I5 is a roller 83 for cooperation with a cam 84 formed on the upper end of a sleeve 85. This sleeve 85 surrounds the shaft of the sprocket wheel II, but is held against rotation by a shear pin 85 which connects it with a sleeve 81. The sleeve 8! is provided with arms 88 which are bolted to brackets carried by the two branches of the track 28 and serve to tie the same together in fixed position.

The fixed cam 84 causes the arms I5 to be periodically raised and lowered as they travel around with the sprocket wheel II and thus lower the flattener disc into cooperative relation with the shaper member and then raise the same. In order to properly lubricate the sliding parts on the rod I3, a grease cup 88 is mounted in the upper end of each rod and communicates with an L-shaped channel 98 which serves to convey the lubricant to the sleeve or bushing I8.

After the flattener discs III are raised from the shapers it is desirable that the ware be slightly cooled so as to set prior to removal from the shapers and for this purpose a cooler 8| is provided. This member is of box-like construction very similar to the burners 48 and is adapted to project cooling air on the surface of the ware after it is carried thereunder. The cooling air is carried to the member 9| by a manifold 92 and it is supported in position on brackets 93 which are mounted on I-beams 4| which also carry the brackets 48 for the burners 48. It will be understood therefore that the cooler 3| may be vertically-adjusted to suit ware of various heights or may be raised entirely out of coopdesired.

It will sometimes be advantageous to use the present apparatus as a. fire polisher, and to this end a side burner I 00 provided with upper and lower compartments is installed. on the carriage body I. This burner is composed of .a plurality of sections arranged in horizontal alignment and each section is provided with upper and lower compartments provided-with\ baflles IN. The burner sections are mounted on an L-shaped bracket I02 which: is in turn supported on. sleeves I03. These sleeves are slidably connected with threaded rods I04 and may be raised or lowered by means of nuts I05 which are threaded on the rods. Rods I04 are fixedly secured in socket members I06 which are secured to plates I0I. These plates I01 are slidably mounted on base plates I08 secured to I-beams 3 and permit the burner I00 to be moved laterally toward and away from the path of travel of the shapers or other ware carriers mounted on the sprocket chain It. The socket members I06 are connected by an L-shaped bar I09 which causes them to move in unison, and a screw threaded'rod I I0 serves to impart movement to this bar. The rod H0 is threaded into'a lug III fixed to the I-beam 3 and is provided with collars H2 disposed on opposite sides of the bar I09. A hand wheel I I3 serves to rotate the rod II 0 and obviously its rotation will carry the socket members I00 and the burner I00 supported therein inwardly and outwardly as may be desired.

of a manifold III associated with a mixer H5, and branch manifolds H6 provided with valves I I? communicate with the upper and lower compartments of the burner. These branch manifolds H6 are connected with box like plates H8 which may be bolted to the rear of the burner and in turn communicate with openings H5 formed in the rear walls of the burner sections. By reason of this particular connecting means for the branch manifolds, any irregularities in the formation of the partsare readily taken care of. These upper and lower sections of the side burners serve to project the flames against the top and middle sections of the articles to be glazed and thereby serve to fire ploish the side walls of the article as well as to provide a smooth finish for the upper edge thereof. When deemed desirable these side burners may be used as auxiliary burners in softening the walls of articles which are to be reshaped into substantially flat articles such as plates, saucers, etc. Moreover, the top burners or a portion thereof may be used in conjunction with the side burners when using the device as a fire polisher.

Upper and lower guard plates I20 and I2! of asbestos or the like are bolted to the track 28 and serve to shield the workmen from the heat of the apparatus. However, when the side burner I00 is to be put in use the upper plate IZI may be readily removed.

In operation, the shapers are continuously carried around the oval path (Figure 8) by means of motor l3 and associated parts. After the nappies, berry bowls, or the like are formed in the forming machine they are carried to the shapers 3| and centered therein by means of the V-shaped guides 63. The articles then pass under burners 48 and are rotated by means of rack 33 and pin ions 32. This rotation. of the articles causes an equal distribution of heat over their walls which gradually flatten out as indicated in Figures l0 merelyemploying the side burners I00 and renjlhe burner I00 is supplied with fuel by means and II As heretofore mentioned, the intermediate portions of the wall will not ordinarily descend bygravity into contact with the shaper and hence the flattener discs or weights 10 are provided. These'discs are lowered by means of cam 84 onto the article shortly after its carrier leaves the rack 33 and hence has discontinued its g rotation. The weight of the flattener I0 is willcient to cause the softened walls to take the form of the shaper, as indicated in Figure 12, and as" the article continues its travel around the sprocket wheel II, the cam 34 again raises the flattener disc by means of arm I5 and the reshaped article then passes under the jets of cooling air projected downwardly from the cooler 3|. The rod or plunger 34 traveling on the cam plate 31 then raises the ejector ,disc 35 and liits the reshaped article out of the shaper 3| as indicated in Figure 13, thereby permitting its ready removal. The

adjustment of the flattener discs with respect to the shapers 3i so that these elements may be properly centered at all times. I

The present device may be readily converted into a fire polisher for various types of ware by dering the top burner or a portion thereof and the cooler inactive. In this use of the device as a fire polisher, the heat shield plate MI is of course removed and the side burner I00-raised to the proper height to suit the ware beingr polished, by means of nuts I05. Moreover, the horizontal distance of the side burner I00 from the ware being carried through the apparatus is adjusted to suit the ware by means of screw shaft I I0 which slides the plates I07 inwardly and outwardly in their guides I08.

From the foregoing description taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, it will be apparent to those skilled in-the art that I have devised a method and apparatus for producing shallow articles such as saucers, plates, and the like, which is very simple in operation; that mechanical means are provided for centering the articles to be reshaped; that means are provided for maintaining a proper centering of the flattener discs with respect to the shapers; that the ware is sufliciently cooled to cause it to set prior to being ejected from the shapers and that the entire device may be easily and quickly converted into a fire polisher by a few simple adjustments.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described what I now believe to be the preferred form of the apparatus, but it is to be understood that certain minor changes may be made in the details of construction-without departing from the essential features 'of the invention and all such changes are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

a What I claim is:

1. Apparatus of the class described including a plurality of traveling shapers, a sprocket chain and sprocket wheels for imparting movement to the shapers, and guide means associated with one sprocket wheel for properly centering articles placed in the shapers.

2. Apparatus of the class described including a plurality of traveling shapers, a sprocket chain and sprocket wheels for imparting movement to the shapers, a plate keyed to the shaft of one of said sprocket wheels and centering arms or guides secured to said plate for properly centering articles placed in the shapers.

3. Apparatus oi the class described including a plurality of traveling shapers, a sprocket chain of said wheels for centering articles placed in the shapers, and means associated with the other spr'oc'ket wheel for flattening the heated articles carried by the shapers.

5. Apparatus of the class described including a plurality of traveling shapers; sprocket wheels and a sprocket chain for imparting movement to the shapers, a heater disposed above the path of travel of the shapers, a carrier concentrically ar-- ranged with respect to one of .said sprocket wheels, said carrier including a plurality of vertically movable arms, a'plate mounted for vertical sliding movement in each of said arms, a keyed connection between said sprocket whel and carrier whereby the plates are caused to travel with the shapers about said sprocket wheel, and a cam for periodically raising and lowering the arms.

0 GEORGE R. HAUB. 

